Citadels of the Indus

7. Natural Protection & Rivers: Name one landform that protected the Indus Valley and explain how the river helped farmers. (2 pts)

Word Bank: [Himalayas / mountains / Thar Desert / silt / irrigation / water]

One natural barrier that protected the valley was the .

The Indus River helped farmers because it provided water and rich for growing crops.

8. City Planning vs. Mesopotamia: How were Indus streets and bricks different from Mesopotamian cities? (2 pts)

Word Bank: [grid system / straight / oven-baked bricks / standard size / winding maze]

Indus cities had neat streets laid out in a instead of a winding maze.

Indus builders made their walls using standard bricks.

Planned Cities on the Indus Quiz • Modified Version Page 1 of 2 (Turn Over for Questions 9–13)

Section 2: Short Answer (Continued) Student Name:

9. Plumbing & Sewage Systems: What did Harappan homes have for sanitation, and what does this show about their government? (2 pts)

Houses had private that drained wastewater into underground street sewers.

Building this organized system shows they had a strong government.

10. Archaeological Clues: What do children's toys and a lack of weapons tell us about Harappan daily life? (2 pts)

Clay and wooden toys show people were prosperous enough to make goods.

Finding very few weapons suggests that war and conflict were .

11. Trade Goods & Evidence: Name one item Harappans traded and one piece of evidence proving trade with Sumer. (2 pts)

Harappans traded valuable items such as brightly colored cloth and jewelry.

Archaeologists know they traded with Sumer because Indus merchant were found in Sumer.

12. Causes of Decline: What natural events caused Indus cities to decay around 1750 B.C.? (2 pts)

Shifts in tectonic plates caused severe and changed the course of rivers.

Because rivers dried up and soil was overused, people could no longer grow enough .

Section 3: Guided Paragraph Response

1 Prompt • 6 Points Total

Prompt: How do physical ruins prove the Indus Valley had a strong central government?

Complete the guided paragraph below. Fill in the blanks and finish each sentence using details from the box.

Key Words: • grid system • oven-baked bricks • plumbing & sewage • flood levees • central planning

Claim: Archaeological evidence clearly proves that the Indus Valley had an organized central government because .

First Evidence: For example, their cities were laid out on a precise , and all buildings used standard .

Second Evidence: In addition, early engineers constructed advanced systems to carry wastewater out of homes.

Explanation: This physical evidence shows strong government control because individual people could not have built

Conclusion: In conclusion, the uniform planning across many cities proves that .

Planned Cities on the Indus Quiz • Modified Version Page 2 of 2 • Assessment Complete

2 pts: Contrasts both streets AND bricks. 1 pt: Explains only street layout or brick difference. Modified Key: grid system; oven-baked.

9. Plumbing & Central Administration 2 Points Possible

Exemplary Answer: Houses had private indoor bathrooms with sloping floors where wastewater flowed into covered brick street sewers and emptied into city sewage pits. This demonstrates strong central government because citywide underground infrastructure requires centralized planning, standardized engineering, and public tax coordination.

2 pts: Describes plumbing system + links to government. 1 pt: Describes plumbing without explaining governance. Modified Key: bathrooms; central.

Planned Cities on the Indus Quiz • Teacher Answer Key Page 1 of 2 (Turn Over for Questions 10–13 & Rubric)

Section 2 (Continued) & Section 3 Rubric Guide Grading Benchmark

10. Archaeological Clues about Daily Life (2 pts) Social Equality & War

Exemplary Answer: Uniform housing sizes suggest social divisions and wealth inequality were relatively minor. Artifacts like clay/wooden toys indicate a prosperous society that could produce luxury nonessentials. The scarcity of weapons indicates limited warfare and a peaceful culture.

Modified Key: nonessential / luxury; limited / rare.

11. Trade Networks & Proof of Contact (2 pts) Commerce & Artifacts

Exemplary Answer: Goods included brightly colored cotton cloth, copper, lumber, gold/silver (Afghanistan), and semiprecious stones/jewelry (Deccan/Persia). Trade with Sumer (Mesopotamia) is proven by Indus merchant stone seals discovered in Sumerian ruins.

Modified Key: cotton / jewelry; seals / stamps.

12. Environmental Collapse & Geological Shifts (2 pts) Decline ~1750 B.C.

Exemplary Answer: Satellite imagery revealed tectonic plate shifts that caused earthquakes and floods, altering the Indus River's flow and causing the Sarswati River to dry up. This destroyed trade routes, while agricultural soil exhaustion prevented feeding large urban populations.

Modified Key: earthquakes / floods; food / crops.

Section 3: Paragraph Response Analytic Rubric (6 Points)

Standard & Modified Grading Criteria

Model Student Exemplar Paragraph (Standard Version):

"Although historians cannot read the Indus script, the architectural consistency of Harappan ruins provides undeniable proof of a powerful central government. First, cities like Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro were organized on uniform grid patterns with defensive citadels and built entirely of oven-baked bricks manufactured in standard dimensions. Second, engineers installed citywide underground sewage and drainage networks connecting every home's bathroom to municipal street gutters. These monumental public works could not have emerged spontaneously; they required centralized leadership with the authority to enforce building codes, coordinate thousands of skilled laborers, collect taxes, and maintain civic infrastructure. Thus, the material ruins clearly demonstrate an advanced, unified administration."

Scoring Notes for Modified Form: Award full credit on the modified version if students correctly complete the sentence stems demonstrating basic comprehension of grid planning, plumbing, and centralized coordination. Do not penalize for phonetic spelling or minor grammatical errors in fill-ins.

Planned Cities on the Indus Quiz • Teacher Answer Key Page 2 of 2 • Evaluation Complete